6 Pricing and Cost Analysis tax and accounting engagements in full — what the client came to us with, what we did, and what it was worth. Each one is specific to pricing and cost analysis work, not a general example.
Case Study 1 · Deadline rescue
Filed On Time From A Standing Start, $125,000 Penalty Avoided — Professional Practice Adding Partners, Lethbridge
Client: A professional practice adding partners · Where: Lethbridge, Alberta · Engagement: 10 weeks, fixed fee
Penalty avoided$125,000
Turnaround10 weeks
FiledOn time
The situation
A professional practice adding partners in Lethbridge, Alberta came to us 10 weeks before its filing deadline with a growth plan with no forecast behind it and no financing lined up. A late filing would have triggered a penalty of roughly $125,000 before interest.
What we did
We worked backwards from the deadline. We rebuilt the reporting around gross margin by service line, which showed two of five offerings were losing money at the current price, prioritising the items that actually gated the filing and deferring everything that did not.
The result
The return was filed on time and complete. The $125,000 penalty never arose, and the compliance calendar we set means the next deadline is scheduled rather than discovered.
Case Study 2 · Structure rebuilt
Corporate Structure Rebuilt For $21,500 Of Annual Savings — Distributor Entering a Second, Windsor
Client: A distributor entering a second province · Where: Windsor, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Saving per year$21,500
DocumentationComplete
Transfer basisRollover
The situation
The structure at a distributor entering a second province in Windsor, Ontario had been set up years earlier for a business that no longer existed, and pricing set by feel, with no visibility into margin by service line had become expensive.
What we did
We built a rolling thirteen-week cash-flow model, tightened collections, and renegotiated supplier terms so the growth stopped consuming the bank balance. The reorganisation used the rollover provisions rather than a taxable transfer, so no tax fell due on the restructuring itself.
The result
$21,500 of annual saving, achieved on a tax-deferred basis. The minute book, elections and valuations are all in the file.
Case Study 3 · Sale and succession
Share Sale Restructured, $750,000 Less Tax On Closing — Family Business Planning Succession, Brampton
Client: A family business planning succession · Where: Brampton, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Tax saved on closing$750,000
PriceAs agreed
Post-closing adjustmentsNone
The situation
A family business planning succession in Brampton, Ontario was preparing to sell. Due diligence surfaced retained cash well above what the business needed to operate, which would have reduced the price or killed the deal outright.
What we did
We cleaned up the historical file, produced a board-ready monthly package — cash, margin, pipeline and covenant headroom — that replaced a spreadsheet nobody trusted, and prepared the due-diligence package the buyer's advisers actually asked for.
The result
The deal closed at the agreed price. $750,000 of tax was saved against the structure originally proposed, with no post-closing adjustment.
Case Study 4 · CRA review defended
$139,000 Reassessment Reduced To Nil On Review — Fast-Growing E-Commerce Brand, Surrey
Client: A fast-growing e-commerce brand · Where: Surrey, British Columbia · Engagement: 11 weeks, fixed fee
Reassessment reduced toNil
Tax protected$139,000
Prior filingsUndisturbed
The situation
A review notice arrived at a fast-growing e-commerce brand in Surrey, British Columbia covering pricing and cost analysis for two tax years. The auditor's working position was an adjustment of $139,000, driven by revenue up 40% year over year and a bank balance that kept falling.
What we did
Rather than negotiate, we rebuilt the record. We modelled the covenant ratios monthly and restructured the debt before the next test date rather than after it and submitted a point-by-point response that answered each proposed adjustment with the document behind it.
The result
The auditor accepted the documented position and closed the review without adjustment, protecting $139,000 and leaving the prior filings undisturbed.
Case Study 5 · Planning that cut the bill
$9,500 Saved By Correcting What Prior Filings Had Missed — Subscription Business Tracking Churn, Mississauga
Client: A subscription business tracking churn · Where: Mississauga, Ontario · Engagement: 4 weeks, fixed fee
Saving identified$9,500
RecurringYes
Positions documentedAll
The situation
A subscription business tracking churn in Mississauga, Ontario asked for a second opinion on pricing and cost analysis after three years of rising tax. The review found a covenant breach discovered only when the bank called.
What we did
We built the comparison first — current structure against two alternatives — and then rebuilt the reporting around gross margin by service line, which showed two of five offerings were losing money at the current price.
The result
First-year saving of $9,500, with the same benefit recurring. Every position taken is documented and supported in the file.
Case Study 6 · Records and systems rebuilt
Books Rebuilt From Source, $6,400 In Unclaimed Input Tax Found — Technology Company Preparing to, Guelph
Client: A technology company preparing to raise · Where: Guelph, Ontario · Engagement: 9 weeks, fixed fee
Unclaimed tax found$6,400
Records rebuilt10 months
ProcessDocumented
The situation
A technology company preparing to raise in Guelph, Ontario could not answer basic questions about its own numbers, because a growth plan with no forecast behind it and no financing lined up sat between the bank statements and the ledger.
What we did
We built a rolling thirteen-week cash-flow model, tightened collections, and renegotiated supplier terms so the growth stopped consuming the bank balance, then documented the process so the work does not depend on any one person remembering how it was done.
The result
Records rebuilt and reconciled, $6,400 recovered in input tax credits that the old file could not support, and a documented monthly process now in place.
Reviewed for the 2025 tax year by Udit Gupta, Certified Tax Accountant. Figures describe representative engagements of this type; outcomes depend on your own facts. Client names and identifying details are omitted for confidentiality.
